General

Sponsor Our Green Star Schools® Program

Launched in 2005, the Green Star Schools® program is the first and only one of its kind in the nation! The innovation of the program has been recognized with prestigious awards from the EPA, Colorado Association for Recycling and Colorado Alliance for Environmental Education. The success of this model program has drawn the attention of other schools across the country. Eco-Cycle, a leader in environmental education for more than 20 years, is sharing best practices and lessons learned with many others who want to implement their own waste reduction programs.

Eco-Cycle’s Green Star Schools®program is...

reducing school trash going to the landfill by two-thirds

instilling life-long environmental stewardship habits

leading to a smaller, more sustainable environmental footprint for school communities!

Zero Waste is one of the fastest and most effective ways a community can decrease its impact on the environment. For students in Green Star Schools®, Zero Waste is an integral part of each school day. Their participation in the Green Star Schools program is making a difference to our environment.

By investing in the program, you have the opportunity to make a difference, too!

Your donation will help us expand the program to involve even more students. In 2012, the Green Star Schools®program will impact 12,204 students (ages 3 – 14 years) and 1,880 staff in 31 Boulder County schools, and we’ll reach at least another 15,000 participants through outreach to parents and families.

How to Rent Our DIY Zero Waste Station Bins

After your event, recycle and compost your materials in your curbside bins, or deliver them to CHaRM or your nearest recycling center.

Return the bins to the CHaRM.

Please note: If the bins are returned soiled, or broken, or if they are not returned at all, you will be billed $50 per bin.

How many bags do you need?

We recommend approximately one bin for every 25 people. Each bin rental includes 1 bag for that specific bin. Additional bags are available for purchase at Eco-Cycle's main office and can be paid for at the CHaRM window when the bins are picked up.

If you use you own bags...

The structure of the bins require that the bags be no smaller than 45-gallon to work properly. Do not use plastic bags for compost; use a green, certified compostable bag (e.g. Bio-Bag). We recommend a clear bag for recyclables. Clear bags allow participants to see the recyclables and prevent contamination.

Collapsible recycling bins are made available by the generosity of the City of Boulder. The bins are manufactured by ClearStream Recycling.

Order here

Please place your order at least 48h in advance. Your order request is subject to bin availability.

If you do not receive a confirmation email with your invoice 48h before your pick-up date, please contact Eco-Cycle at 303-444-6634 or email Lucie Nabet at .

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Eco-Celebrations

by Eco-Cycle®

For Stylishly Sustainable Events including

Eco-Celebrations is a Zero Waste service that turns any black tie event into an elegant green tie event. At an Eco-Celebration, our experienced staff takes care of all the details to ensure a seamless sustainable event. We service celebrations anywhere from 50 to 1000 attendees, and all the event materials are either reusable, compostable, or recyclable.

Eco-Cycle will manage everything, including:

Zero Waste planning with you, event planners and caterers from start to finish

On the day of your event, setting up elegant stations for composting and recycling

Formally attired staff assisting guests and staff for the duration of your gathering

A detailed report of the environmental benefits of your Zero Waste event

What people are saying about Eco-Celebrations

“Eco-Celebrations brings an elegant sustainable solution for anyone planning an upscale event. The beautifully designed Zero Waste stations were a hit at a recent event at the Rembrandt Yard.” — Sara Mahle, The Rembrandt Yard

“In 2005, A Spice of Life became Colorado's first catering company to go Zero Waste. Eco-Cycle was instrumental in helping us achieve that goal and has been a valuable partner ever since. Through Eco-Cycle's products and programs, we have been able to not only implement Zero Waste practices in our internal operations, but have also been able to bring Zero Waste practices to 100% of the clients for whom we cater. Customers are amazed at the ease and affordability of hosting "green" events. Eco-Cycle's latest endeavor, Eco-Celebrations, seeks to further expand the accessibility of Zero Waste events. By offering their expertise and product line to all event planners, party designers and caterers the general public will be able to easily offer stylishly sustainable events.” — Dan Bruckner, A Spice of Life Catering Services

Schedule your stylishly sustainable event today.

Call Eco-Cycle at 303-444-6634 or e-mail

Build Community, Save Cash and Reduce Waste: the New Sharing Economy

On a single planet with seven billion people, we simply don’t have the raw materials for everyone to own one of everything. Enter Collaborative Consumption, the hot new eco-term for something we all learned to do a long time ago: Share.

There are many ways you're already sharing if you've ever shopped at a local thrift store, traded on craigslist, checked out a book at the library, or just borrowed a ladder from your neighbor. But thanks to social networking technologies, a rising need for community, environmental consciousness and old-fashioned frugalism, sharing is taking off in a new way and redefining our consumption-driven economy.

There are tons of services and sites out there to help you share, lend, barter, discover, connect and more. Here is a pretty good list of our favorites. Find even more at the Collaborative Consumption website. Enjoy and let us know if you find more great tools and sites.

Eco-Cycle's Large Zero Waste Event Services

Eco-Cycle's Large Zero Waste Event Services are designed for large-scale events of at least 1000 people, such as town festivals. We are only able to serve events in Boulder and Broomfield Counties. Hosting a Zero Waste event is a fantastic opportunity to educate the public about Zero Waste and to demonstrate your commitment to a sustainable future.

What is a Zero Waste event?

A Zero Waste event is not accomplished by merely adding recycling and compost bins. The key to a Zero Waste event is careful planning so that all materials used and discarded are reusable, recyclable, and compostable. By incorporating Zero Waste into the beginning stages of your event, it becomes quite easy to achieve this fundamental change in resource consumption. Since no trash is distributed at the event, trash cans can be removed and replaced with Zero Waste stations, which consist of a recycling and a compost container. Zero Waste events are also educational opportunities where attendees can experience a microcosm of a world without waste.

What is required to become a Zero Waste event?

It is imperative to commit to making an event Zero Waste early in the planning process. All vendors and event participants distributing materials must participate in Zero Waste. Eco-Cycle will provide a sample contract that must be included in all event application materials and returned by all vendors. This advance planning ensures that only recyclable and compostable materials will be distributed at your event. Eco-Cycle staff is available to consult with event planners for ease in Zero Waste event planning.

Becoming a Zero Waste event requires a financial commitment as well. The average cost for full Eco-Cycle Zero Waste Event Services ranges from $800 - $1,200 for a one-day, large-scale festival.

On event day, Eco-Cycle will provide Zero Waste stations throughout the event for public use, as well as private Zero Waste stations for vendor use. We generally provide collection of recyclables and compostable materials. Event organizers typically provide service for any trash generated during the event. These details are negotiable.

After the event, Eco-Cycle will provide event planners with a diversion rate--the percentage of materials that were recycled or composted instead of landfilled. Boulder County events have diverted as much as 98% of event discards. We will also provide a template letter to the editor you can use to help draw attention to the commitment and success of your Zero Waste event.

If you are an event planner interested in Zero Waste, please complete our Zero Waste Event interest form. You will hear back from Eco-Cycle within three business days.